Brushing attachment for knitting machines



April 1939f vF. o. OAKES 2,152,912

BRUSHING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 24,v 1958 2 sheets-sheet 1 Fig.1.

s lnvenTon F'uITon D.OGKS

yf d MW ATTys.

April 4, 1939. A E 2,152,912

BRUSHING ATTACHMENT'FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 24, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor. F'ulTon DhOcxKes Patented Apr. 4, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENTTOFFICE' BBUSHING ATTACHMENT FOR KNITTING MACHINES Fulton D. Oakes, Jamaica Plain, Mass.

Application August 24, 1938, Serial No. 226,409

8 Claims. (01. 66-147) This invention relates to a device adapted to subject knitted fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine to a brushing operation to raise the textile fibers on the surface of the fabric thereby to produce a napped surface.

A device of this character is illustrated in. my Patent 1,961,939, dated June 5, 1934, said device being in the nature of an attachment to a knitting machine and comprising a rotary brush arranged with the bristles'thereof having a nap-raising engagement with the knitted fabric as itis delivered from the knitting machine, the rotation of the brush around the-tubular knitted fabric producing the desired brushing operation.

In 'the device shown in said patent, the brush operatescontinuously While the knitting machine is operated and therefore the entire surface of the knitted fabric is subjected to the brushing or nap-raising operation.

According to my present invention, I have provided means whereby the nap-raising brush may be rendered operative or inoperative depending on whether it is desired to raise the nap on any portion of the knitted fabric or to allow some portion of the knitted fabric to be delivered without having its surface subjected to the brushing operation. v

In knitting tubular fabric from which sweaters and similar garments are made, it is customary to knit the portion of the fabric which forms the bottom or waist band as a ribbed fabric and to knit the portion of the fabric from which the body of the sweater or garment is made as a Plain stitch fabric.

Sometimes it is desirable to subject only the plain stitch portion of the fabric to the brushing or nap-raising operation and my present inven tion provides a device by which the napping brush can berendered operative only while it is acting on the portion of the fabric made with the plain-stitch and can be rendered inoperative when it comes to the ribbed portion of the fabric.

Furthermore my invention comprises means for automatically rendering the nap-raising brushes either operative or inoperative in timed relation with the delivery of the knitted fabric from the machine.

In order to give an understanding of the invention I have illustrated in the drawings a selected embodiment thereof which will now be described after which the novel features will be pointed out in the appending claims.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view showing a portion of a well-known type of knitting machine and illustrating my improvements applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a sectionon the line 2-2, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view showing one of the napping brushes in its inoperative position;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section on the line 4-4, Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged section on the line 55, Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is an Fi 2.

The invention is shown as used in connection with a knitting machine designed for knitting tubular fabrics and in Fig. 1, I indicates the table of the knitting machine which is supported upon suitable legs,a fragment ofone of the legs being shown at 2, and which carries the needle cylinder 3 and the usual rotary cam ring 4 by which the needles are operated, neither the needles nor the mechanism by which the needles are operated by the rotary cam ring 4 being shown as they are common and well-known parts of circular knitting machines. The cam ring 4 is rotated by usual means comprising a driving shaft 5 which is provided at its end with a gear 6 meshing with gear. teeth I with which the ring 4 is provided.

The tubular fabric which is delivered from the machine is indicated by the dotted lines 8, and as the fabric is delivered, it passes over a spreader 9 which is supported by a center pin I0 secured to the table as usual in knitting machines of this type. 1

The device herein shown is similar to that iilustrated in my Patent No. 1,961,939 in that a nap-raising brush device is employed which rotates around the tubular fabric 8 as it is delivered from the knitting .machine with its bristles in nap-raising contact with the surface of thefabric. This brushing device is carried by a rotary ring I I which is mounted for rotation in a supporting ring I2 that is carried by arms l3 depending from the table I.

Means are provided for rotating the brush-supporting ring II from the drive shaft 5 and for this purpose the brush-supporting ring i I is provided on its under face with gear teeth l4 which mesh with a gear I5 carried by a shaft IS, the latter being supported in suitable bearings II that are secured to the supporting ring I 2. The shaft I6. is driven by a sprocket wheel l8 that is connected by sprocket chain I9 with a sprocket wheel 20 mounted on a countershaft 2| that is enlarged section on the line 6-6,

. journaled in a bearing 22' secured to and depending from the table I; The counter shaft 2| has the brushing device is in the form of separate brush elements, two such brush elements indicated at 24 being, herein shown although the invention would not be departed from if only one brush element or more than-two brush elements were employed. Each brush element has a structure somewhat similar to card clothing in that it comprises a backing member 25 of flexible material having bristle points projecting therefrom, said bristles or points preferably extending at a slight angle to the backing as shown best in Fig. 2. Each brush element is mounted on a carrier 21 which, in turn, is mounted on the ring II for ,movement into and out of operative position.

One end of each backing member 25 is provided with a loop 28 which fits over a pin 23 rising from one end of carrier 21 and the otherI end of each backing member is connected by springs 33 to a second pin 3| also rising from the carrier 21. These springs 33 tend normally to hold each brush element in a straightened condition as shown in Fig. 3.

As stated above, each carrier 21 is mounted on the ring II for movement from an operative to an inoperative position and vice versa, the operative position being shown in Fig. 2 and in dotted lines Fig. 3, and the inoperative position shown in full lines Fig. 3. The carrier 21 is in the form. of a curved plate which has secured to its underside a bar 32 that is slidably mounted on and guidedby a guide member 33 that, in turn, is secured to the rotary ring II. The bar 32 has wings 34 secured to the sides thereof which engage the sides of the guide 33 thereby holding the bar 32 and guide 33 in alinement but permitting the bar to slide on the guide. The guide 33 has a headed stud 35 screw-threaded thereto and rising therefrom which stud extends through a slot 38 in the bar 32, the stud and slot serving to limit the sliding. movement of the bar on the guide.

The guide and the bar are inclined relative to a rad al direction, the inclination being forwardly with respect to the direction of rotation of ring II which is indicated by the arrows in Figs. 2 and 3. I

When each brush element and its carrier-21 are in their outward or inoperative position, shown in Fig. 3, the bristles 26 of the brush elements will just clear the fabric 8 so that said bristles will have no brushing action on the fabric.

When, however, the carriers 21 and their brushing elements are in their inward operative position shown in dotted lines-Fig. 3, and full lines, Fig. 2, the bristles 26 of the brushing elements are brought into contact with the fabric so that rotation of the ring II will produce a brushing action on the fabric to raise the desired nap.

The present invention provides means for automatically throwing each brushing element from its inoperative to its operative position and vice versa, and in the construction shown this change from. inoperative to operative position of the brushing elements is accomplished by starting the rotation of the ring I I from a position of rest and the change from the operative to the inoperative position is accomplished by bringing the ring I I to rest again. Furthermore, the operation of starting the ring II in rotation from a position of rest and then stopping said ring may be controlled automatically by means of a pattern chain which will be designed to correspond to the particular fabric being knitted.

If it be assumed that the ring II is at rest and that each brushing element is in its inoperative position shown in full lines Fig. 3 with the bristles of thebrushes out of contact with the fabric 8, then when the ring II is started in ro- -tation in a clockwise direction as indicated by the dotted line arrow in Fig. 3 the inertia of the carrier 21 and its brushelement and the bar 32 will cause the carrier to be moved inwardly into the dotted line positionFig. 3, and into the full line position Fig. 2 thereby .bringing the bristles 26 of the brushes into brushing contact with the fabric 8. This movement of the carrier 21 from II is rotating.

The springs 33 are relatively light and as the brushes are brought into engagement with the fabric, the backing 25 is flexed somewhat to assume a curvature corresponding to that of the fabric, the springs 30 lightly holding the brushes against the fabric. 2

When the ring II is again brought to rest the pressure of the fabric on the brushes is suflicient to move the carriers 2! outwardly into their inoperative position, as shown in full lines Fig. 3.

I have stated above that the starting and stopping of the rotation of the ring is secured through themedium of a pattern chain which controls the clutch by which the sprocket wheel I8 is clutched to or unclutched from the shaft I6. This clutch comprises the two clutch elements 31, 38, the clutch element 31 being fast on the shaft I5 and the clutch element 38 being slidably mounted on the shaft and connected to the sprocket wheel I8. The movable clutch element 38 is controlled by a clutch lever 38 pivoted at 40 to an arm 4I extending from the supporting ring II, the end 42 of the clutch lever bein forked and engaging in a groove 43 with which the clutch element 38 is provided.

The outer end of the .clutch lever 33 is connected by a link 83 to an arm 44 fixed on a rock shaft 45 which is mounted in a supporting bracket 46 that is secured to one of the legs 2 of the machine. Thisrock shaft 45has another arm 41 fast thereon which is connected by a link 48 with a lever 49 pivoted at 53 to a supporting bracket 5I that is secured to and depends from the table I. This lever 50 cooperates with a pattern chain 52"which is operated by a sprocket wheel 53 mounted on a shaft 54 also journaled in the bracket 5 I. This sprocket chain has the usual high links 55 and low links 55, the construction being such that when the end of the lever 43 rests on the low links as shown in Fig. 1 the clutch 31, 38 will be operative, while when a high link 55 comes under the end of the lever 49, the clutch will be disengaged through the linkage 48, arms 41, 44, and link 43 and lever 33.

The sprocket wheel 53 may be driven by any usual means commonly employed for operating the various pattern chains of a knitting machine. In the construction herein shown, the shaft 54 has a ratchet wheel I! fast thereon which is engaged by a ratchet 58 that is oscillated by an eccentric 58 on a shaft 60 that is journaled in the braeketmember The shaft 60 has a gear 6| fast thereon which is driven from the cam ring 4 by means of suitable gearing. The teeth 1 of the cam ring t engage and drive a gear 62 which has rigid therewith a pinion 63 that meshes with the gear 6|.

The high links 55 will be placed on the pattern chain 52 at the proper locations so that they will engage the lever and thus disengage the clutch n, u, at such times as the portions of the fabric which are not to be brushed are being delivered past the brushes, these high links being so constructed that as soon as any portion of the fabric which is to be brushedis delivered to the brushes, said links will have passed out from under the lever 49 thus allowing the clutch 31, 38, to become engaged again, thereby starting the ring I I in rotation with a quick movement. As stated above, the starting of the ring in rotation will automatically move the brushes into their operative positions, which positions they will retain until the clutch is disengaged again and'the ring ll brought to rest.

I'claim:

l. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver a tubular fabric, a napping brush adapted to engage the surface of the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, means tb rotate the brush around the fabric while in engagement therewith, and means actuated by the knitting machine for rendering the brush-rotating means operative or inoperative while the knitting is in operation.

2. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver tubular fabric, of a napping brush to engage the exterior surface of the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, means to rotate the brush around the fab- :10 while in engagement therewith, thereby to raise a nap on the fabric and means actuated by the knitting machine to render the brush-rotating means operative or inoperative.

3. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver a tubular fabric, of a napping brush adapted to engage the surface of the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, means for rotating the brush around the fabric, pattern mechanism actuated by the knitting machine, and means controlled by the pattern mechanism to render the brush-rotating means operative or inoperative.

4. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deli er a tubular fabric, of e brush-supporting member, means to rotate the brush-supporting member around the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, a napping brush mounted on the suporting member and movable thereon toward and from the fabric, and means whereby the brush is moved toward and into contact with the fabric when the rotative movement of the brush-supporting member is initiated. a

5. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver a tubular fabric, of a brush-supporting member, means to rotate the brush-supporting member around the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, a napping brush mounted on the supporting member and movable thereon toward and from the fabric, and means whereby the brush is moved toward and into contact with the fabric when the rotative movement of the brush-supporting member is initiated, said brush being movable backwardly into inoperative position by the pressure of the fabric thereagainst when the rotation of the brush-supporting member ceases.

6. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver a tubular fabric,'of a bmsh-supporting member, means to rotate the brush-supporting member around the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, a napping brush mounted on said supporting member and movable thereon between an operative position in-engagement with the fabric and'in inoperative position separated from the fabric, means to render the rotating means operative or inoperative while the knitting machine is in operation, and means whereby the brush is moved automatically into operative position when rotative movement of the brush-support is initiated.

7. The combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver a tubular fabric, of a brush-supporting member, means to rotate said member around the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine, a napping brush mounted on said supporting member for sliding movement toward and from the fabric in a direction at an angle to a radial line, and means to render operative or inoperative the means for rotating the brush-supporting member, the inertia of the brush causing it to move inwardly into operative position in contact with the fabric when the rotation of the brush-supporting member is initiated, and the pressure of the fabric against the brush causing it to be moved backwardly into inoperative posltion when rotation of the brushsupporting member ceases.

8. In combination with a knitting machine adapted to knit and deliver atubular fabric, of a napping irush adapted to engage the surface of the fabric as it is delivered from the knitting machine. means to rotate the brush around the fabrlc while in engagement therewith, said means including a clutch, and clutch actuating means controlled by the knitting machine.

m'ron 0. came. 

